About Us

Appalachian State University’s Turchin Center for the Visual Arts has just received a major donation. Two alumni, who wish to remain anonymous, have made a gift of $500,000 in honor of Dr. Peter Petschauer, one of their professors, who recently retired from the school’s Dept. of History.

Appalachian State University’s Turchin Center for the Visual Arts ha just received a major donation. Two alumni, who wish to remain anonymous, have made a gift of $500,000 in honor of Dr. Peter Petschauer, one of their professors, who recently retired from the school’s Dept. of History. Petschauer also serves as the Turchin’s advisory board chairman. According to Vice Chancellor for University Advancement, Jerry Hutchens, the donors are considering options for naming a major space in the gallery to commemorate their gift.Also in ASU news, the school has decided to honor former chemistry professor George Miles. Miles taught chemistry for 30 years in Appalachian’s Dept. of Chemistry. He and wife Ida have continued to make contributions to the department after his retirement in 1991 through contributions to the Dept. Of Chemistry Endowment fund which have enabled students to present their research at conferences and with financial help for research. The Dept. of Chemistry is honoring these gifts by naming its organic chemistry lab in Miles’ honor.And, Creative Writing Professor Joseph Bathanti has won the 2006 Spokane Prize for Short Fiction. His collection of short stories was selected from more than 500 entries and will be published this fall by Eastern Washington University Press. Bathanti, who is co-director of the school’s visiting writer’s series, has also received the Carolina Novel Award, the Novello Literary Award, and been nominated for Pushcart prizes in both short fiction and creative non-fiction.